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. 2013 Mar 27;5(3):37-42.
doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v5.i3.37.

Clostridium difficile enteritis: A report of two cases and systematic literature review

Sean P Dineen  1 , Steven H Bailey, Thai H Pham, Sergio Huerta
Affiliations

Clostridium difficile enteritis: A report of two cases and systematic literature review

Sean P Dineen et al. World J Gastrointest Surg. .

Abstract

Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is the most common cause of healthcare associated infectious diarrhea. In the last decade, the incidence of C. difficile infection has increased dramatically. The virulence of C. difficile has also increased recently with toxigenic strains developing. C. difficile is generally a disease of the colon and presents with abdominal pain and diarrhea due to colitis. However, C. difficile enteritis has been reported rarely. The initial reports suggested mortality rates as high as 66%. The incidence of C. difficile enteritis appears to be increasing in parallel to the increase in colonic infections. We present two cases of patients who had otherwise uneventful abdominal surgery but subsequently developed C. difficile enteritis. Our literature review demonstrates 81 prior cases of C. difficile enteritis described in case reports. The mortality of the disease remains high at approximately 25%. Early recognition and intervention may reduce the high mortality associated with this disease process.

Keywords: Antibiotics; Clostridium difficile; Colorectal surgery; Enteritits; Nosocomial infection.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CONSORT diagram indicating the results of the systematic literature review. The results of the systematic review demonstrated 34 citations that met criteria for inclusion. There were a total of 83 patient-cases of Clostridium difficile enteritis identified.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Number of cases has increased considerably in the last decade. A: The number of cases (patients) reported in the literature each year between 1980-2012; B: The cumulative number of cases over the same time period.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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